{"id":3209,"date":"2023-08-23T06:55:17","date_gmt":"2023-08-23T10:55:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.deeds.com\/articles\/?p=3209"},"modified":"2024-04-25T23:17:34","modified_gmt":"2024-04-26T03:17:34","slug":"locked-out-less-than-5-of-u-s-housing-is-accessible-to-older-disabled-residents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.deeds.com\/articles\/locked-out-less-than-5-of-u-s-housing-is-accessible-to-older-disabled-residents\/","title":{"rendered":"Locked Out: Less Than 5% of U.S. Housing Is Accessible to Older, Disabled Residents"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Tens of millions of U.S. residents have a problem. There aren\u2019t enough homes for the elderly and disabled population. One in four of us \u2014 more than 60 million people \u2014 have a disability. And our older adult<\/a> population is rapidly growing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a general matter, the United States needs something between 3 million and 6 million homes, according to Republican Senator Mike Braun of Indiana, who sits on the Senate\u2019s aging committee. Bob Casey, the U.S. Senator and former governor of Pennsylvania, notes how disabled home seekers are doubly disadvantaged in this market. They need homes they can afford and homes they can navigate safely, despite their disabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Casey, who chairs the Senate Special Committee on Aging, recently proposed a federal bill. It would require the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program to fund homes with accessibility features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Will Casey\u2019s proposal get support? Will other laws be proposed? We\u2019ll have to see. We\u2019re certainly expecting a heightened interest in this issue nationwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

\u201cWarehoused\u201d Disabled Residents Sue Massachusetts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Accessible homes \u2014 homes with, say, wide doorways, low counters, and safe, fall-proof bathrooms \u2014 can help older and disabled people stay home as they age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Less than 5% of the homes in the country are outfitted with accessibility features. Less than 1% of homes come complete with wheelchair ramps and reachable cabinets and sinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When people with disabilities can\u2019t afford (or navigate) homes, they may wind up housed in nursing homes and unable to break out without assistance. It\u2019s happening in Massachusetts. Good luck finding affordable homes there, let alone ground-floor level homes or homes in buildings with elevators and in-home assistance.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2022, a group of unwilling nursing home residents got representation from Greater Boston Legal Services and others. And they have filed a federal class action lawsuit in a Boston court. A win for the plaintiffs in court could compel the Massachusetts Office of Health and Human Services to help thousands of people find housing and in-home assistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The plaintiffs\u2019 lawyers point out that the Americans with Disabilities Act protects people with disabilities from being warehoused in institutions if they could safely live in traditional homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of the plaintiffs, who are mostly senior with disabilities, have lived in various nursing homes for years. And they have horror stories. They describe some of these institutions as worse than jails.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The situation is even more urgent in our current times, say the lawyers. Potential Covid contagion in nursing homes is a special risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, in Pittsburgh\u2026<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Caster Binion, who heads the city\u2019s Housing Authority, says the government will expand opportunities for seniors in need of housing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Allegheny County, home of Pittsburgh, has a motto: Always Inspiring<\/em>. But can the county inspire a public commitment to house its seniors? It does have subsidized housing for people aged 62 and older, but a report carried by WGBH – National Public Radio<\/em> found a long waiting list for the units. Thirteen percent of the currently unhoused and unsheltered people are aged 55-64. Six percent are 65+.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is going on?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some older people found themselves without homes when their relatives passed away during the pandemic. Inflation, too, is putting many seniors on the verge of home insecurity. A fixed income may not be enough these days to cover basic bills. And the well-known lack of affordable housing means older and disabled residents are showing up at city shelters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What could help these struggling residents live on their terms?  <\/p>\n\n\n\n